The Darkness Within
by MacSas
Summary: When the widow of a Marine friend of Luke's arrives in Hazzard, her arrival sets off a chain of nightmares Luke thought were long buried. What is he hiding?
1. Chapter 1

_August 1969_

Darkness surrounded him.

The bush was so dense he couldn't see even if it were light enough to. There was silence. Not even the sound of those annoying crickets. It was so hot he could feel the sweat dripping down his neck. He moved forward, slowly, quietly. Every muscle tense, ready to spring into action. His eyes darted from left to right, watching for any sign that he'd been spotted.

And there was the smell. _Always_ the smell. Not the smell of the bush or the heat, but the smell of burnt flesh, human decay. He couldn't look back to where the smell originated. He had to keep his eyes forward. But he knew that what lay behind him was horrific.

His platoon had been accompanying another. They had received 'sure' information about a group of Vietnamese in the area who were suspected of harbouring weapons for the Viet Cong. The two platoons had been ordered to seek out the group and destroy the weapons. Just another day at the office. Or so they had thought. They had barely made it to the edge of the village when they were hit by fire from all around. The information had been a plant in order to take out as many soldiers as possible.

He couldn't quiet the screams in his head. Screams of his friends as they were cut down without mercy. It had been chaotic and noisy, and then there had been silence. The silence had scared him more than the screams. Then there was nothing but the smell. He knew that he had to move or risk being caught alive, a fate worse than death. He had slowly moved backwards to where his platoon had entered the outskirts of the village. As soon as he was sure he hadn't been spotted, he started walking back to the drop zone, in hopes that the message to their air team had gotten through. If he could make it to the clearing, he may have a chance of being spotted by a Huey.

Finally making it to the edge of the clearing, he lay on the ground and watched. And waited. And listened.

He hated this place. Hated the fact that he had been here for nearly two years. He especially hated the fact that in those two years he had killed, seen killings, and seen things no man should have to endure. He now knew the absolute worst of human nature. There were whispers in his troop that this war was one they couldn't win. His men had started to openly ask why they were here, what good could they still do? Every time they seemed to gain ground, they lost much more in the form of good men, brave warriors. He sighed. He had kept his opinions to himself; after all, it was his job to build moral not shake it. But even he had to admit that this war was getting … old.

A sound alerted him. So minute that another man wouldn't have heard it, yet he knew exactly what it was. He raised his head just enough to see his salvation. A Huey was bearing down on his position, it's gunman searching the area for signs of life. He moved the short distance to the clearing, all the while watching his surroundings. His movements hampered by the bullets in his thigh and ankle. The gunman signalled to him that they had seen him. The pilot eased the Huey to a hover, just low enough for him to jump aboard. Once on the chopper, he looked back out over the jungle. Where were his men? The gunman yelled, "Are you it?" 'No', he replied. There are others, there has to be. Any moment now, they would break through the bush. 'Come on' he whispered.

Suddenly a volley of gunfire alerted all on the chopper that they had been spotted. The pilot yelled to his gunman "That's it, we've been here too long. We've got to go"

The gunman started returning fire. The chopper lifted up. The pilot expertly moved them out of harms way. Before long they were on their way back to base.

During the pandemonium, no one on board noticed a solider breaking through the bush. He waved frantically. Gunfire surrounded him, yet he continued to try to catch the choppers attention. No one saw him. His blood ran cold as he watched the Huey fly off.

More gunfire had him ducking for cover. He looked up to see a line of men coming slowly towards him. He'd been spotted. There was no hope now.

Taking his gun, he stood tall and fired …

* * *

_1985_

"Lukas. K. Duke! Are you listening to me?"

Luke jumped at the sharp sound of his Uncle Jesse's voice. He glanced around, recalling that he was supposed to be helping sort firewood.

"Sorry Jesse," he smiled. "Guess I was lost in thought"

Jesse grinned thoughtfully. "Must have been some thought. I was talking loud enough for that Van Gough painter fellow to hear me"

Luke frowned. "Jesse, he's dead, not to mention missing an ear"

"My point exactly" Jesse hooted. He slapped Luke on the back. "Come on son, I think we've done enough to earn a beer or two. You pack up that pile of wood there and I'll meet you in the kitchen"

"Okay" Luke agreed.

A while later, he reflected on the remnants of the nightmare that had haunted his sleep the night before. He _never_ dreamed about Vietnam. He'd considered himself one of the very few lucky ones. Yet, lately, he'd been plagued by memories. Things he thought he had left in the jungle now appeared in his dreams. Why now? he wondered, as he put his shirt back on. What could have triggered the nightmares?

He knew many former soldiers who struggled day and night with emotions no one could ever truly understand. A lot of what they had experienced they would never reveal. Luke himself had seen too much over there, learnt things he didn't need to know. It was the kind of world a young man from a small farm should never be introduced to.

Like so many before him, Luke had left a boy and come back a man. A man much more worldly-wise, much more cynical, much more harder. He had revealed very little about his two tours of duty with the Marines. 26 months of sheer hell had been boxed up with a tightly controlled lid.

Now, it seemed, the lid was starting to pry loose.

* * *


	2. Chapter 2

Shawna Quinn-Hardy hated moving house. It made her feel like she was uprooting her entire life and relocating it to an alien area. Around her stood boxes that held parts of her life, both as a Marine wife, and as a widow. Each box had a bold mark on it, naming where it should go in her new home. She found it slightly amusing that her entire life could be packed into nothing more than a few cardboard boxes. It made her wonder just what she had done with her time on earth. How would she be remembered? By nothing more than just a few boxes with labels on them?

She had gone from a happy newly wed wife to a woman waiting on her husband to come home. The wait was against the odds, she knew, but what else was a woman to do? It was expected of her. Not just by others but by herself. As a teen bride she had taken her vows seriously, so much so that she hadn't even dated since her husband, Kane, had disappeared somewhere in Vietnam. The following month would mark the 16th anniversary of his disappearance.

They had purchased the four-bedroom country home with such high hopes just weeks before their wedding. Of course, the house was too big for her alone. Yet she had shunned the well-meaning advice from friends to sell up and move on. What if Kane made it home some day only to find that home wasn't his anymore? What would he think if he turned up on the doorstep and found some other family instead of his wife?

And so, for nearly 16 years she had stayed and waited.

Earlier that year, she had been advised by military representatives that there was no hope of there being any military personnel left alive in Vietnam. There was a point in 1973 when there had been some hope for her. The government had made an agreement with the Vietnamese to allow some POW's to be flown out. However, her beloved husband had not been one of the nearly 600 to be rescued. Now, she finally had to admit to herself that it may just be time to move on.

So she had reluctantly put her marital home on the market. She had been surprised by how much she had made from the sale. It was enough to buy her a small home on the outskirts of San Antonio and put a nest egg in the bank.

She smiled to herself as she walked between the boxes. She was thinking like she was an old woman already. She had just turned 33, yet she had lived at least two lifetimes. She knew that her friends were hoping that buying a new home meant that she was willing to find a new love as well. That was something that could never happen though. She felt it was bad enough that she had decided to sell the home she and her husband had dreamed of raising their family in. To replace him with another would be unthinkable. She had simply loved the man too much. Heck, she still loved him as though her life depended on it.

She selected two small boxes and walked to the front porch. Deciding she'd put them in the car later, she took a moment to observe the neighbourhood. It was a typical Saturday afternoon. A couple of young children rode their bikes along the footpath; her neighbour Jack Marrow was mowing his lawn. He had lived beside her for the last 6 years or so, yet she knew very little about him. He was a quiet man, yet had a friendly disposition. He always had a ready smile for her. A friend had even suggested Shawna be bold and ask the man to dinner. Shawna smiled at the thought. She just couldn't imagine herself ever being that bold. Across the road, Nettie Adamson was getting ready to walk her two lively terriers. At the last moment, she turned back to her house, obviously having forgotten something.

Kane had always called Nettie 'Netty Forgety' In all the years Shawna had known Nettie there was very little the poor woman had remembered. Actually, the only thing she seemed to remember was Shawna and Kane's wedding anniversary. Which was amazing, considering that the couple had only lived in the neighbourhood for a year before Kane had been sent to Vietnam. Every year, Nettie discreetly left a small bunch of flowers on Shawna's doorstep to mark the occasion of her vows. It was a small gesture that had given Shawna a large dose of courage in the years following Kane's disappearance.

Kane.

Shawna took a deep breath as she called his adored face to mind. There had been a time when she hadn't needed to pause to recall his face. His presence had been with her every waking moment. His voice had haunted her dreams, calling to her, begging her not to give up.

16 years. Was that too soon to move on? Even as she planned her new life, she questioned her every move. She often wished that Kane had simply been killed in action. At least then she'd have had a body to bury, a place to go to grieve, an ending not a constant question. How could a man simply vanish? During the first few years, she had often wondered why the military didn't just go into the area Kane had disappeared and search for him. Of course, during the ensuing years she had educated herself a lot about Vietnam. The bush was simply too dense, the weather too humid for anything to not decompose quickly. Then there was the fact that the Vietnamese had kept their records of POWs somewhat secretive. If Kane were alive, chances are that he wasn't on anyone's list. He could easily have been passed off as dead in the jungle somewhere, and the military would be none the wiser.

She clearly recalled the day a Marine officer had knocked on her door. She'd been stunned to see him there, knowing it couldn't be good news. Before the man had completed the standard, "Are you Shawna Quinn-Hardy, the wife of Kane Hardy …" she had fainted. When she came too, the Marine had informed her that her husband of just over a year was MIA. "What?" she asked.

"Missing in Action, ma'am"

"Oh" she'd replied simply. "Well, you will find him … won't you?"

How naïve she'd been.

"It's not quite that easy, ma 'am"

Well how hard could it be, she recalled thinking. Just go in with guns blazing and bring him home.

A few years later she had found the support of other MIA/POW wives an essential part of her life. She had made lasting friendships through a shared burden. One of her closest friends was a Navy wife who started a National League that enabled women like Shawna to have a voice, a godsend during a time when many in the government preferred them to remain quiet about their missing men. Shawna had lived with the hope that Kane wasn't a POW. She'd heard such shocking stories from both returned POWs and their wives. Many of the men had endured beatings, brainwashing and being forced to sign 'confessions' to war crimes against the Vietnamese people. One woman had horrified her with stories of how her husband had been tortured by having his joints stretched. Shawna refused to believe that Kane had been enduring the same thing. She couldn't stand not knowing what had happened to him, but, at the same time, she didn't want to know that he might have endured the same brutality as some of his comrades. It was a classic catch twenty-two.

Shaking herself from the dark thoughts, Shawna stepped off the porch to take the short walk to the mailbox. Being a Saturday, she wasn't expecting there to be anything there. So she was a little surprised at the small envelope she found. Cream in colour, it was addressed simply to 'Shawna' She slipped her nail under the flap and removed a small card. Reading it, she felt a chill sweep over her despite the humid Austin afternoon. She looked around her, wondering if the sender was nearby. All she saw, however, was Jack Marrow. Having finished his lawn, he was now busy pulling weeds in the garden on the far side of his front yard. The muscles in his back rippled under the afternoon sun. The man didn't seem to break a sweat however. Nettie was long gone, and the children riding their bikes were now at the other end of the street.

Shawna frowned. It was silly to suspect people around her. Whoever had sent this note had to be sick, or just stupid. Still, she decided, it would be best to talk to someone about it. A friend from long ago sprang to mind. She hadn't talked to him in years, but she knew that he would know what to do.

Putting the card back into the envelope, she started walking back to the house. Questions crowded her mind. Who was the sender? How did they know about her past? What was the purpose of this? It made no sense. Surely it was nothing more than a sick joke. She consoled herself with that thought as she placed the long distance call. It took only a few moments for someone to answer the connection. The deep voice revived memories from long ago. Memories she had worked hard to put to rest, hoping that he had done the same.

"Duke residence, this is Luke"

* * *


	3. Chapter 3

Shawna Quinn.

Luke smiled as he recalled the young woman he'd known almost a lifetime ago. She had been so young the first time they'd met; yet they both had felt an instant connection. Luke had just joined the Marines and was about to leave for boot camp. He had to make the hard decision of leaving Shawna behind. They'd had just one summer together, yet it was that one summer that had gotten Luke through his toughest test in Vietnam. He had never spoken of his trials over there, yet he knew Shawna would be the one to understand the best. She had gone on to marry Kane Hardy, a fellow Marine Sergeant whom Luke had worked with a few times. Kane had arrived in Vietnam a few weeks after Luke. Shawna had been married a little over a year before Luke heard that Kane had gone missing. What Shawna didn't know was that Luke had been with Kane on that last disastrous mission. Luke had been the only one to come out of the jungle that day. It had haunted him that Kane had disappeared while working with Luke's platoon.

Luke had learned more about Kane's disappearance than anyone else did however. He still had problems coming to terms with it. He hadn't told anyone, not even Shawna, that he had found Kane in a POW camp during Luke's second tour of duty. Luke still found it hard to believe that he had been rescued from one disastrous mission, only to be caught by the VC on the next one. This time only his platoon had been on the assignment, and a combination of grenades and well-placed land mines had bought the platoon to its knees. Luke and three others were captured.

Feeling an onslaught of memories nudging the back of his mind, he walked to his room and closed the door. Bo was out with Jesse doing shopping in town. Daisy was working an extra shift at the Boar's Nest. Luke knew that he would be safe from concerned relatives. He lay on his bed and closed his eyes, finally allowing the memories to take over.

* * *

May 1969

The first thing he recalled about Vietnam was how beautiful it seemed. Sitting in the Huey with six other men getting ready to be briefed on their new assignments, Luke had taken a moment to look out over the terrain. He'd been surprised to see white beaches, a pristine waterfall and vibrant green bush. Of course, he would be come well acquainted with the bush. It would soon become a second home. A place that hid him from trouble but became his own personal hell at the same time. It was both exciting and frightening. After all those months of training and preparing, he was finally in the heart of the battle. Adrenaline pumped his heart, causing goose bumps of anticipation. He could have sworn he knew how Daniel felt going into that lion's den.

Once he was on solid ground, he and his fellow soldiers were directed to a large tent. Here was where they received their briefing. Basically, Luke thought with a smile, an officer in charge telling them that they were guests of the South Vietnamese government and that they were here to help prevent communism taking over. Luke recalled the excited ripple that had gone through him. 'These folks really need us' he recalled thinking. He believed he was on a noble mission. Turned out, it was more a gung-ho thing. But he was 19 and fresh off the farm. What did he know? He didn't even care when, the following morning, he was assigned KP. Nothing could quell his excitement.

By the second day he had been assigned to a unit under the direction of a Lieutenant that reminded him of a bulldog. And he has met Kane Hardy, a young soldier who had arrived just a few weeks after Luke. The two had hit it off instantly. Both were from small towns and had much in common, like their taste in women. Luke discovered fairly quickly that Shawna hadn't been pinning over him when he'd left for boot camp. As Kane proudly showed him a wedding photo of the couple, Luke didn't have to pretend interest. He was darn interested! Especially about how Shawna had met Kane and why she'd decided to wed so soon after they had parted. She sure had made a beautiful bride. Luke felt a sense of anger and resentment as Kane put the photo away. How could she? Why would she? And how amazed she would be when her darling husband wrote her and told her all about the guy he'd met from Hazzard. Luke smiled. Would Shawna reveal she already knew Luke? He doubted it. It wasn't the kind of thing that came up in conversation between newly weds, especially when one was half a world away fighting a war.

Nonetheless, Uncle Jesse's good manners deemed that Luke would put resentment behind him and welcome the newcomer; while a sense of chivalry deemed he never told Kane that he knew all about his lovely wife … especially a birthmark she had in a certain place.

The following few weeks passed without incident. There were the daily comings and goings of platoons and the odd groan about KP. But for the first 2 months Luke spent in Vietnam, he was happy.

Of course, he had no idea that was about to change …

He recalled the day that he was deployed on his first disastrous mission. It seemed so simple at the time. A spy had told them that a local village was helping the enemy by hoarding weapons and food. A group of North Vietnamese were supposed to be arriving at the village later that night. Luke and Kane had been chosen to take watch on the right side of the village. They were protected by bush behind them and a slight rise in the terrain in front of them. It should have been a typical mission. It wasn't until it was too late that they discovered a North Vietnamese spy had deliberately led them to the village.

As his friends lay dead around him, Luke had anxiously made his way back to the predetermined pick up point. He remembered the smell of gunpowder, the smell of smoke, and most of all, the smell of blood. As he waited for the chopper, he looked around anxiously for anyone who may have also made it. He didn't recall when he had been shot, but the two bullets in his leg were now announcing themselves. He would later discover that one bullet had gone through his thigh, while the other had hit the back of his ankle. Nervous tension made it almost impossible for him to remain still. In the moments before the chopper came, he thought of his beloved family. Jesse, who always ruled the roost with love. Bo, who was so boyish he, could talk his way out of anything. And Daisy, who was a girl desperately trying to shake the dust from her boots.

After what seemed like an eternity, he had seen the chopper and was on his way to base. He scanned the bush, desperate to know if anyone else was there. What had happened to Kane? How would Shawna cope if she lost her husband?

As the chopper came under fire and was directed away by the pilot, Luke looked back to the jungle. In his desperation to see someone, anyone, he thought he saw a man waving …

* * *


	4. Chapter 4

_August 1969_

_…He'd been spotted. There was no hope now. Taking his gun he stood tall, and fired…_

The grenade thrown at him mercifully missed it's target, but it succeeded in knocking him down long enough for them to advance on him. As he reached for his displaced gun, a harsh voice yelled, "Do tay len!"

Slowly, he raised his hands. Admitting defeat was worse than death. What really annoyed him was his fellow survivor leaving without him. Fury burned in him as he stood still and watched his captors talk rapidly amongst themselves. By leaving him behind, Luke Duke had almost certainly signed Kane Hardy's death warrant. They were supposed to be comrades, friends, brothers.

A short Vietnamese solider motioned for Kane to turn around. His arms were pulled painfully behind his back. Harsh rope was used to tie his arms at both the wrists and elbows. It was uncomfortable and the rope took no time to start cutting into his skin.

A push in the back moved him forward. Two of his captors walked in front of him, two behind and one at either side of him. He was completely surrounded, paraded like a trophy through the jungle. The Vietnamese couldn't hide their glee at their prize.

A little further into the jungle, closer to the village where he and his men had been ambushed, Kane spotted a tall man watching expectantly. He had a commanding presence about him, and eyed Kane as though he were deciding whether to toss him out with the garbage or not. This was the man in charge, Kane decided. There was more smiling and nodding, pats on the back and greetings between the man and his soldiers. After the man in charge gave a command to one of the men, Kane was turned abruptly to the right. Before him lay what was left of his platoon. The urge to vomit was so strong Kane could taste it. He refused to show any weakness however, and merely looked on his fallen brothers with unblinking eyes. Inside he screamed their names, begged them to sit up, prayed this dream would soon be over and he would wake. He knew it to be real though. It was too evil to not be.

The commander tied a rope around Kane's already burning, bleeding arms, and pulled him forward. Like a dog on a leash, he was led back to the village; stepping over the bodies of those he had just shared a meal with not 2 hours before.

No, he decided angrily, he would never forget a coward named Luke Duke from a place called Hazzard County.

_1985_

Shawna didn't know what to expect when she decided to travel to Hazzard County. She had heard Luke talk often of his county, the farm, and his family. It was hard for her to imagine that half of what he'd told her was true though.

A corrupt County Commissioner who worked hand in hand with a just as corrupt, if not slightly odd balled, County Sheriff. He and his cousin doing moonshine runs as lads. His cousin Daisy, making a pair of shorts a little shorter and creating a new trend. It didn't seem, well, normal. And yet, Luke was the most warm, loving, genuine and generous man she had ever known. Maybe he was the exception to the rule in this town?

Hazzard County sounded like a place that some TV writer had dreamed up and made millions out of. Yes, she smiled, it sounded like the kind of town that would end up in a show almost anyone would watch.

As the Greyhound bus pulled into the township, she eagerly looked out the window. And she was surprised by how normal it did indeed look. Old buildings were arranged in a circle that boasted a beautiful park in the middle of the city centre. The main feature of this park was a gazebo placed in the middle. The white paint gleamed on the patchwork frame, indicating that it was well tended. A small ironwork fence that had been painted black surrounded the park itself. Flowers were everywhere.

As the bus pulled to a stop, Shawna took a moment to collect her thoughts. It had been more than a decade and a half since she'd last seen Luke. She still recalled the day he'd told her he was heading to a place called Paris Island to finish his training. When she'd asked if he'd go to Vietnam, he'd smiled and told her that 'little scuffle' would be long over by the time his training was finished. He'd been at Paris Island six weeks before being called to go to Vietnam.

Their romance had ended when he'd enlisted in the Marines, but they had remained firm friends, talking almost daily by phone. Vietnam had changed that. Some of the reports that had reached her ears about the war had been disturbing, even at that early stage. Yet, like most people, she'd trusted her government and they had assured the people at home that the war was not only winnable, but that things were going better than expected.

Yet, Luke had been injured and Kane had gone missing. It had been their first mission together. Shawna had been dumbfounded when her husband had written her about a guy named Luke Duke that he had become friends with. What were the odds? She knew Luke well enough, however, to know that he wouldn't say a word about their relationship.

It had taken Luke nearly a year to recover from the wounds to his leg. Yet he was returned to Vietnam as soon as he was fit enough. There was now a shortage of men in the winnable war that was going better than expected. Shawna shuddered, wondering what Luke had endured going back when he had desperately wanted to stay home. In a weird way, her former lover was her last link to her husband. But Luke never spoke about the war. When he'd arrived home after his second tour of duty, he'd simply gotten back to work on the farm. Life had gone on as if he'd never been away, almost as if he'd wiped those years from his memory. Luke Duke may have secrets, but so did she. Like the real reason she married Kane.

The exhaling of the bus brakes bought Shawna back to the present. She wondered at the anxious, almost school girl like feeling in the pit of her stomach. She stood and straightened her jacket. Running her fingers through her short blonde hair, she took a deep breath…

…Ready to face her past.

* * *


	5. Chapter 5

* * *

"Shawna"

She turned at the deep sound of her name, but at first saw no one familiar. Then, the sea of people in front of her seemed to part.

And there he was.

Lukas. K. Duke.

Marine sergeant, war hero, car builder and general all-round good guy.

He never did tell her what the 'K' stood for.

He seemed to pause for a moment, taking in the sight of her, as she was of him. The years had been kind to him. His lean frame was still well muscled, his hair still the colour of night, his eyes still that sharp blue. And his smile, well …

He came towards her.

"Hi" he said simply.

"Hi" she replied with a smile. What should she do? she thought. Hug him? Shake his hand? Kiss his cheek? All or none of the above?

She swallowed, sure he could hear it. Her saving grace was that he seemed just as nervous as she. Finally, he stepped forward and swept her into a huge hug.

Releasing her, he took a long look at her face. "It's been a while"

"No kidding," she laughed.

Luke continued to look at her with those intense eyes – was he trying to see her soul? Shawna shifted under his gaze, alerting Luke to her discomfort.

"Sorry" he said. "It's just that you still look as beautiful as the day you did when we said goodbye …"

"Luke" Shawna interrupted.

Like a man coming out of a daydream, Luke snapped back to attention.

"Well," he looked around. "Where are you're bags?"

Shawna pointed to a large case, which Luke quickly retrieved. Starting down the street, he motioned for Shawna to join him.

"Is there some place we can talk?" she asked.

"We can talk at the farm" he replied, motioning to the battered pick up truck as they crossed the road.

"Some place more quiet was what I had in mind, Luke" she told him.

Luke put her case in the bed of the truck, then turned and looked at her.

"What's going on Shawna?"

"That's what I intend to find out" she told him simply.

Luke walked to the passenger side of the truck and opened the door for her. Without a word she got in.

During the ride, Luke swallowed the urge to hit her with a barrage of questions.

"Beautiful country" Shawna's soft voice broke into his thoughts.

She was leaning against the passenger door with her head resting against the window, watching the scenery pass by.

Luke noticed that she looked troubled, almost sad.

"That it is," he agreed.

After a silent moment, Shawna added, almost to herself, "Nothing like Vietnam"

Luke caught her comment and frowned.

A ghostly sensation started tickling the back of his neck.

* * *

_Back At The Bus Terminal_

He'd known that she'd come here. Knew that she'd run to her former lover.

As the man watched Shawna drive off with Luke, his anger boiled. He'd known this would happen the moment she'd seen that card.

He'd waited long enough for this to happen, waited and planned a long time to have the two of them together in the same place. It made his job a lot easier. No loose ends to worry about.

He pulled his car into the light flow of traffic, careful to keep the pick up in sight.

As he glared at the silhouettes of Shawna and Luke, he wondered what they'd be talking about.

Old times? Old memories? Old _husbands_?

He ground his teeth.

At least she'd waited 16 years before throwing Kane out of her life. That still didn't give the man behind the wheel too much comfort though. Vows made were vows never to be broken.

He could understand Shawna's need for closure, her desire to put the past to rest. But he couldn't overlook how quick she had taken the bait to contact Luke. Apparently all she'd needed was a good enough reason.

And the bait that he'd sent her was good enough.

Soon the trap would be sprung, and he would have two rats in his sight.

* * *

_Hazzard Creek_

"I thought about you a lot over the years"

Luke looked up from his spot near the willow tree and smiled. "I thought about you too, and us"

Shawna smiled up at him from where she sat on the grass. "Us, huh?"

Luke sighed. "You know if I could have married you, I would have"

"You just didn't have the chance to propose" Shawna jokingly mocked.

Luke shook his head. Tossing aside the leaf he had been slowly shredding, he walked to the creeks edge. "I was new in the service, I thought my future was already mapped out. I didn't know when, or even if, I'd be home again. I didn't want a wife sitting at home worrying about me all the time …"

Realising what he'd said, he turned to face Shawna, an apology on his lips.

"That's the way life ended up for me anyway" she smiled. "Ain't it ironic?"

She stood and joined him at the creeks edge.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that," he said.

He quickly looked away in case Shawna say the guilt in his eyes.

"Well" he changed the subject. "Let's see this letter you got"

Shawna took the crumpled card from her jeans pocket and handed it to him.

The small card was embossed with bold black writing.

_**I KNOW WHAT YOU DID**_

_**I KNOW WHY YOU DID IT**_

_**KANE NEVER KNEW – **_

_**LOVERBOY KNOWS MORE**_

_**ABOUT KANE'S DISSAPERANCE**_

_**THAN YOU THINK…**_

_**BRAVE ENOUGH TO ASK?**_

Luke re-read the note and frowned.

It appeared to be a two-part message. The last part he had no problem understanding. The first part was obviously meant for Shawna.

"What was it that you did that Kane didn't know about?"

Shawna laughed. "What is it about Kane's disappearance that you know?"

* * *

The man watched from his hiding place.

Luke and Shawna were discussing the letter. Good, he thought, they'd figured each was keeping a secret from the other. Who would be the first to crack and tell all?

Excitement rippled through him. This was perfect!

He would finally ensure that Kane had justice. So far his plan had gone well. The idea of the letter had been to make Shawna seek out Luke. That would ensure they were together when the man struck.

Kane would be avenged!

* * *


	6. Chapter 6

* * *

"Luke, I need to know"

Luke shook his head and walked a few steps away.

No, this was not something he wanted to get into. There was no way he was going to have this discussion in the middle of nowhere. No way he was going to tear his heart out and throw it on the ground so the woman he'd loved forever could see how cold and black it truly was.

No, no, no, no.

"No" he finally said out loud. "No, I can't do it Shawna. I just … no"

Shawna watched him pace in front of the willow tree, amazed at the change in his demeanour. He was waging a war within himself, lost in a time and place that he had fought daily to never recall again. She could see the pain etched on his handsome features, the frustration in his clenched fists. His eyes no longer saw her or the creek in front of them. She was sure that all he saw now was the bloodshed, horror, torture and endless pain that haunted his past.

She should never have pushed him, she thought. How could she do this to him? It was like poking at a wounded animal, making it run into a corner. And she knew what happened when animals got cornered. They fought.

But she _needed_ to know.

Reaching her hand out to him, she whispered his name. "Luke"

Within a heartbeat, Luke had taken her arm and tossed her to the ground.

"Get down" he whispered, his wild eyes looking left to right.

Shawna tried to wiggle out of grasp, but he lay across her, solid in weight, grinding her frame into the ground.

"Luke" she urged, "get up off me!"

He covered her mouth, his own mouth close to her ear. "Sshh" he ordered. "Do you hear that?"

Shawna, face down on the ground, looked up. "Hear what?"

Luke moved quickly, crawling across to the willow tree in typical Marine training. With an almost death like grip on Shawna's wrist, he dragged her behind him, harshly reminding her to stay down.

Shawna started to worry. Luke's eyes were wild; he was looking for something that she believed wasn't there. No one else was in the meadow but them. Except for the running of the stream and the occasional bird, there wasn't a sound. Luke was so greatly trained, she could only guess what he was seeing or hearing, but it must have been something for him to act like this.

And so they hid behind the tree, while Luke watched the area with the alertness of a hawk. He leaned to one side of the tree's massive trunk, and looked out to the clearing.

"See them?" he whispered.

Shawna frowned.

"See who?"

"_Them_. They're going to kill us if they catch us. We must stay down and we'll be safe"

He looked behind him. "Where's that Huey?"

As he became more agitated, Shawna realised the terrifying truth. Luke wouldn't tell her about Kane, but it appeared he was showing her. He was caught in a full-blown flashback. And she had no idea what to do …

She decided it might be best to simply act out the scene with him.

"Sergeant" she whispered.

He looked at her with blank eyes. "What?"

"I see the Huey," she pointed lamely to the battered pick up, hoping her idea would work.

"Right" Luke said, getting to his knees. "We're going to have to play this cool and quick. Got the radio?"

His question took her off guard, and she faltered.

"Damn it, Marine" he exploded in a hushed tone. "How do you expect to get out of here if you can't even do the one job you've been assigned? Didn't Carter give you the radio?"

Before she could reply, he continued his rant, his hand painfully squeezing her arm, his face close to hers as he spoke. "If you mess up on this mission it will be on your fault they got away. If anyone behind you dies, their blood will be on your hands. And all because you couldn't do the one thing you were asked – carry the damn radio! How do you think we're going to get hold of that Huey? Smoke signals?"

As Luke turned away, muttering about useless newbies, Shawna stood in shock. Tears streamed down her face as she watched the proud warrior stuck in his memories. She wanted to take him in her arms and soothe his pain until they both forgot the past had ever existed. But she knew the past was something they both had to face, or it would haunt them forever.

"Luke" she whispered.

"That's Sergeant to you, you idiot. How on _earth_ could you forget a radio? For crying out loud! How did you get out of boot camp in one piece?"

Shawna was crying in earnest now, watching Luke fall apart in front of her very eyes.

"Are you crying? _Crying_? There's no crying in the Marines!" Luke looked at her with such disgust she cringed. He put his hands on his hips and looked over the meadow. "They're out there," he whispered. "They don't know I know that, but I do. I've seen them. I know what they do to you if they catch you alive"

He looked at Shawna. "If you ever get caught by them, do yourself and your loved ones a favour. Shoot yourself"

Shawna's mouth dropped open. Was that what Kane had done? No, she thought. He wouldn't have done that; Luke wouldn't have either.

"Luke" she whispered again, reaching out to him. "You're scaring me"

He looked down at her hand on his arm with disdain. Flicking it aside, he told her coldly, "Get used to it"

Shawna changed tactics. She took up her role again. "Sir, I can fly that Huey," she said, motioning again to the truck.

"Now you're thinking. Too bad it took you so long to decide to do so. You crawl over to the pilot side; get it started up. We'll give you the cover you'll need. Wait until I tell you to fly off though; we don't want any more mistakes"

Shawna nodded, having no idea what he was talking about, but figuring as long as she made it to the truck she would be 'following orders' She did her best attempt at the crawl she had seen Luke do earlier, and approached the drivers side of the truck. She looked over at Luke; still beside the tree, still watching the meadow, still lost in the past. Her heart broke for him. How many people had seen him like this? None, she'd bet.

He crawled to the passenger side of the truck, got in and instructed her to take off. She reversed out the way they had come and turned back onto the road.

Finally Luke smiled. "Good work, Marine!" he said, patting her hard on the shoulder.

A few minutes later he was asleep!

Shawna was shaking all over, tears streaming down her face. When it became impossible to see the road through her tears, or hold the wheel steady through shaking, she pulled to the side of the road. Putting her forehead to the wheel she gave in to the need to sob her heart out. For Luke. For Kane. For herself. And mostly for all those who had come home from the war but had never been able to leave it behind.

After nearly thirty minutes, she lifted her head and leaned over to grab a tissue from her handbag. It was then that she saw Luke was awake and watching her.

Not again, she thought.

"Sorry Sir," she started.

"Forget it" Luke replied softly, an apology in his eyes. "I had a flashback, didn't I?"

"Yes" she noted simply.

"Did I hurt you?"

"No"

He frowned at that. "You're sure?"

"Yes"

"I'm sorry you saw that. It doesn't usually happen around folks"

"Which is why you've managed to keep it a secret?" she guessed. She shook her head and turned to face him fully. "Luke" she implored, "you should have someone help you with this. What happens if you have one of these flashbacks and you end up doing something you can't recall"

"Already happened," he said with a ghost of a smile. "Woke up in a neighbours dog kennel with a hunting knife between my teeth. Still don't know how I got there or what I'd been doing before I woke up"

Shawna gaped at him. "Luke …"

"Please" Luke stopped her. "Don't say anything. Let's just get back to the farm, have coffee and dinner and go from there"

"Okay" she finally agreed.

""I'll drive" Luke suggested, noting her still pale face and the slight tremor in her hands.

"Good idea" she smiled.

A little while later, Luke turned off the road they'd been travelling and started the truck down a sloping hillside.

"Even the hills make pretty scenery" Shawna joked.

"Yeah. Most day's old man Kramer has his cattle wandering all over this area. They usually feed down the bottom there"

Noting how steep the incline was that he was pointing to, Shawna said "Maybe you should slow down then. The last thing we need now is hit a cow"

Luke laughed as he eased on the brake pedal. "Jesse's truck wouldn't stand up to the collision"

As Shawna shared his laughter, she noticed his frown as he pumped the brake pedal.

"Luke, what's wrong?"

"Okay, don't panic but, um, we have no brakes"

"No brakes!" she practically screamed at him.

"Don't panic," he reminded her.

"Why would I panic?" she asked. "We're only hurtling down a hillside in a tin can with no brakes! What's to worry about?"

* * *


	7. Chapter 7

* * *

"Don't panic Shawna" Luke admonished. "I can handle this"

Considering what she'd seen him go through at the creek, Shawna didn't bother hiding her look of doubt.

Luke sighed. Handling the truck and her would be impossible. He needed to focus on the truck for now; later he'd work on reassuring her he wasn't as mad as he'd seem a while ago. His skills enabled him to take the tight curves easier than most would have found it. Still, the truck was old and unpredictable. And this wasn't a racetrack; it was a hill with tight curves, a deadly drop on one side and a solid cliff face on the other. He thought about scrapping the side of the truck along the cliff to try to slow down, but quickly dismissed the idea. There was too much of a risk that the motion would cause sparks. On Shawna's side there was a patch of gravel that ran alongside the drop. He aimed the wheel towards the gravel and allowed the truck to coast along it. They were close to the bottom of the hill. He could see the road that led to the Duke farm. Just a few more turns.

Shawna looked sideways at Luke as she clung to the dashboard. The movement on the gravel had slowed them down a little, but not enough for her liking. The sensation of being out of control was sickening. The sound of the gravel crunching under the tires was almost deafening. The whole truck vibrated with movement, and Shawna was it was about to fall apart. She couldn't stand to look out the front window, instead she focused on Luke. He held the wheel with assurance, while alternating between watching the road in front and the drop beside them. He could do it, she assured herself. Surely he'd been in tighter spots? She wanted to weep and beg that he get them to the bottom alive. But she dared not make a sound.

Luke was aware of Shawna's terror. He could almost hear her heart beating. He was also aware that she was too terrified to look out the window. He pursed his lips in concentration. The last turn was coming up; unfortunately it was a hairpin turn and the worst on the hill. All his skill and experience now flowed into his moving of the wheel. He turned it just enough to meet the turn. Without warning the truck skidded, it's back tire slipping almost completely off the edge. Shawna gave a startled yelp. Luke gripped the wheel, turning the truck back to its original position. Halfway into the hairpin turn he decided to forgo the gravel and moved the truck into the centre of the road. It would be safer to negotiate the rest of the turn from here. As the truck coasted through the last bit of the turn, Luke fought to keep the wheel steady in his hands. The wheel vibrated in protest, his grip tightened. Finally the turn ended and a long straight stretch of road came into view. Luke now moved the truck off the side of the road and onto a rugged dirt edge. As the truck bumped over the uneven surface, Luke pulled the emergency brake.

All was silent for a moment. Luke exhaled loudly.

"Well" he smiled, leaning back in his seat. "That was different"

Shawna shook from head to toe. She opened the door and practically fell out of the truck. She backed away from the travelling coffin and sat in the dirt, head in hands. She was barely aware of Luke sitting beside her and gently taking her in his arms.

"We're okay, honey," he whispered.

Shawna shook her head.

"Someone tried to kill us Luke"

When Luke remained silent she looked up at him.

"I know," he said simply. "There's no way those brakes would have failed like that. Unless they had been tampered with"

Luke went to the truck and stuck his hand underneath it. After feeling around for a moment he bought his hand out. Shawna wasn't surprised to see that he had brake fluid on his fingers. Luke walked back over to her and sat down. She closed her eyes and put her head on his shoulder.

"It's because of the note, isn't it?"

He rubbed her back in a soothing motion. "Possibly"

Shawna sighed. "I shouldn't have come here. I should have just let the past go, moved to my new home and got on with life just like I planned"

"Sssh" Luke put a finger to her lips. "Have I ever broken a promise to you?"

"Considering you never promised to marry me, no"

"Ouch" Luke smiled. "I promise you that we will get to the bottom of this. Okay?"

Shawna looked at him for a moment; sure that he could do anything.

"Okay" she finally agreed.

This was going to be an interesting journey.

* * *

Luke and Shawna had made it back to the farm by the time Daisy had dinner on the table. Luke had called Cooter to have the truck taken to town for repairs. He'd dropped the pair off at the farm on his way back to the garage.

Bo exuberantly welcomed Shawna to the "Duke family Mansion" then was dismissed by Jesse with a reminder that he still had chores to finish.

"But it's dinner time" Bo had argued.

"Those who don't finish their chores, don't get to eat" Jesse replied.

A lover of food, Bo needed no further convincing.

Shawna sat at the table and watched Luke and Daisy interact. The two were obviously very close. They bantered with each other with the kind of familiarity that only close family members enjoy. An only child, Shawna had always slightly envied Luke his ties to his family. Daisy was bemoaning her latest romantic disaster. Apparently, Bobby Joe had stood her up the previous night, and still hadn't called to say why. Shawna smiled at Luke's "Want me to say Howdy to him?" reply.

"No" Daisy admonished, swatting his arm with the towel she held. "It's hard enough for me to get a date with you hovering in the background. The last thing I need is for you to go tracking down any guy that stands me up"

"What do you mean?" Shawn asked. She could easily see that Luke would do anything for his family, which made what she had to tell him all the more harder. They were their own little army, take on one and you took on all of them.

"Well," Daisy smiled, "folks round here know that Luke was a Marine. So the guys that want to ask me out are usually too terrified to do so"

Luke gave a look of mock disgust as he sat at the table. As she offered Shawna more coffee, Daisy took up her case again. "How about that time I came home from a date a little later than usual. What do I see? Luke here trying to look like he wasn't watching out the window"

"Luke" Shawna admonished with a laugh.

"She was more than half an hour late" Luke shrugged.

"He broke the blind trying to get a look at what I was doing"

Shawna laughed out loud. Luke snorted, "And what were you doing, little cousin?"

Daisy blushed. "Something you shouldn't have been watching"

"Something you just shouldn't have been doing, more like it"

Daisy sighed loudly. "Luke, I am a grown woman …"

"…You think you're a grown woman …"

"…and I have the right to see who I want and when I want"

Luke shook his head.

As the two started a friendly debate that Shawna could tell they'd had a thousand times before, Bo walked into the kitchen.

"Well, hey there Miss Shawna" he smiled, pouring himself a cup of coffee. "Has my ugly cousin deserted you in favour of losing the same old argument with Daisy?"

Shawna laughed.

The family had a way of making a person feel right at home. They were simple people who loved the simple life. They loved each other no matter what, and they defended each other just as strongly. As Shawna glanced at Luke, still embedded in his battle with Daisy, a lump formed in her throat. She was about to change his sense of security.

* * *

Damn it. Damn it. Damn it!

He had been so close. They should have died. That stupid old truck should have fallen off the side of the hill easier than an old nag.

But no! Mr Hero has to show what he thinks he's made of and rescue the day.

Agh!

The man put a cloth to his forehead to stop the flow of blood caused from banging his head against the wall. He felt no pain, barely even registered the bright red spot on the cloth in front of him, or even the stain on the wall.

His mind was already focused on his next move. He was a patient man. The years had taught him how sweet revenge could be when it was least expected. He was so tired of Luke Duke getting the better end of the deal.

No more. He clenched his fist as he hit out at the wall. No more!

He could wait for his revenge. Waiting was what he was good at.

* * *


	8. Chapter 8

* * *

The following afternoon, Luke and Shawna decided to take a drive so they could talk privately. As much as Luke loved his family, they made no excuses for being curious about his relationship with Shawna. Though Luke had told his family about Shawna when they had been dating, he hadn't told them that he had met the woman he wanted to marry. He'd kept that to himself, hadn't even discussed it with Shawna. It was just as well, he thought now. He'd been in no position to marry her or give her a secure life.

When he'd first met Shawna she'd been a fiery, stubborn, independent girl of sixteen. She'd just moved out of her family's home in San Antonio and was making a life of her own. It would have been the classic tale of waitress falls for newbie recruit, except there had been no happy ending for them. Luke had never led her on though. He may have seen her as the girl he could settle down with, if they'd met in another time, but Shawna had nursed no illusions about their relationship. She knew that he was starting a new career and was not willing to give it up for permanence at home. She wouldn't have asked him to either, no matter how much in love she'd been with him. He didn't want to go into combat leaving a new bride behind, possibly making her a widow before she had become used to being a wife. What kind of life would she have had?

Luke smiled. Well, he now knew what kind of life she would have had. The same she had now…Just with a different husband.

* * *

"This has been a long time coming" Luke murmured, looking out over the scenery.

They were at the top of Eagle Point, a huge rock mass that sat high above the county. The top was completely flat which made it ideal for looking at the county below. Shawna was packing up the picnic basket that Daisy had packed for them. She wrapped her arms around her knees, rested her chin on them and focused her attention on the lone figure in front of her.

"I don't know where to start" He kept his back to her. "So I'll tell you this and no more"

Shawna understood the warning against questions in his voice.

"That morning, I had a bad feeling about the mission. I'd already seen firsthand what bad Intel could do. It was bad Intel that caused the deaths of my men, and had gotten me injured" He glanced over his shoulder at her. "But it wasn't bad Intel that got Kane killed"

Shawna remained quiet as Luke looked away again and continued to talk; almost to himself.

"I was worried that this mission would fail as well. Maybe I was nervous because I was leading a smaller group. This was my first time taking the lead again, since I'd returned from the Naval Hospital. My men were itching to go that day. We'd lost a lot of ground and a few good men in the days beforehand. The fighting had gotten so scrappy; we often weren't sure who was calling the shots. Many of us were sure that the guys in command had lost the plot. We were losing the war and the men were losing faith. It was no secret among us that folks back home were turning their backs on the war. Care packages often had newspaper articles smuggled in them, so we kept up to date on some of the news. I often thought about those protests as I'd sit in the pouring rain night after night, on another watch"

He paused and looked at Shawna, though she was sure he didn't actually see her.

"They had no idea what it was like for us. Not all of us wanted to be there"

He remained silent for a moment, then, putting his hands in his pockets, he looked at his boots and continued.

"Things were going fine, although the men were jumpy. War can be addictive, you run the risk of getting a thrill for combat, and nerves make you punchy. And that was what caused one of the guys to shoot at a shrub, thinking it was the camouflage that the VC were fond of using on their heads" He shook his head. "A stupid shrub. Well, that just announced our position to the VC that were hiding off to our other side. It wasn't long before we were out numbered. I was one of the ones that was captured"

Luke stopped at Shawna's gasp. She quickly covered her mouth, hoping the noise wouldn't distract him from continuing.

"I was led to a bamboo cage. My boots and socks were removed; my feet were put in shackles. An iron collar was put around my neck. It had a rope attached to it that secured me to the side of the cage. It was cramped and I couldn't move. It took six men to carry that thing with me in it. At the camp, my cell was just as small. There were no windows. My feet were shackled to an iron bar at the edge of the doorway. I could sit up or lie down, but little else"

He shook his head and started to pace, his story picking up speed in an effort to get it over with.

"The place smelt of … I tried to escape once. Only made it as far as the edge of the camp. My punishment involved being buried up to my neck in the ground for almost a week. One of the guards asked me if I knew why I was there at the camp. I told him I was a POW. He laughed and told me that I couldn't be a POW as there was no war. And since we were the without having given an official declaration of war, I was a war criminal. Mind games. Man, they were good at those. I could hear other prisoners being tortured, yet the guards were trying to convince me that I wasn't in a POW camp. I was simply being detained because I was guilty of war crimes."

Shawna had closed her eyes in the midst of Luke's memories, trying to avoid looking at his pain. It took her a moment to realise he'd stopped talking. She opened her eyes to find his shadow looming over her. She had to squint in the afternoon sun as she looked up. He had a look she couldn't decipher, his hands clenched at his sides, his voice thick.

"A lot of men got fungus infections. It begins like ringworm and spreads to cover most of your body. You constantly itch because you're always sweating. The more you scratch the more you break your skin. The more that happens, the more your clothes stick to you. So you pull your cloths from the pussy spots, only to start the itch off again. There was a POW I met that had the infection. He was so bad he was nearly all bones. I was ordered to clean him up. That involved scrapping the puss off his body. His ulcers were so large I could out my fingers in them. The poor man was already dead in his mind – it wouldn't take long for his body to catch up. I sat with him, hoping he knew he wasn't alone. One day, he started talking to me. Talked about his wife back home, how he was a newly wed. She'd be expecting him to return home, they'd just bought a house in Houston before he left for Nam…"

Shawna started trembling. It couldn't be.

"He said, 'You won't forget me, will you' No, I said. 'You remember who I am?' he asked"

Luke paused and looked Shawna in the eye.

" 'Of course I do, Kane' He said 'Don't ever let her know I was here, I don't want her to know how bad it was for us' I agreed not to tell you, Shawna. I promised your husband that you would never know that he'd died in my arms in the middle of a filthy POW camp"

Shawna blinked, took a deep breath, exhaled it loudly and got to her feet.

"Oh my God" she whispered. "He was there all the time?"

"It would seem so"

"What happened?"

Luke looked at her sadly. "I held his hand the night he stopped talking. His eyes rolled back and he …" he finished with a shrug.

Shawna closed her eyes. Now she knew. Kane was dead and had been for years. She could have moved on in 1971, but she had believed that there was a tiny hope. There had been nothing, and no one had bothered to tell her. Actually, Luke hadn't bothered to tell her. Why? Because he'd made a promise to Kane. What about her? She was mad. She was confused. She was grieved. But she also felt a sense of peace, a relief that the truth was now known. 16 years she had fought for closure. Now she had it.

"Where's his body?"

Luke looked up. "I guess they buried it somewhere outside the camp"

"Oh my God" she repeated. "What he went through. What _you_ went through. I can't get my head around it! Thank goodness Kane never knew the truth"

Shawna stopped suddenly, aghast at what she'd just let slip. She covered her cheeks with her hands and looked at Luke.

He leaned against the hood of the General Lee, the more reliable of the Dukes cars, long legs crossed at the ankles, his arms crossed over his chest. His gaze on her was strong and unwavering.

"The truth about what, Shawna?"

* * *


	9. Chapter 9

* * *

"How did you get out of there?"

Luke knew Shawna was avoiding his question, but he'd allow it. For now.

"The camp came under attack by the US Army. In the confusion, I managed to get close enough to be seen by one of the choppers. I was dressed similar to the Vietnamese, but I had a beard, so the crew knew I had to be an American. I was fed rations during the flight back to base, was debriefed and sent home. End of story"

Yeah right, Shawna thought.

There was a long stretch of silence before Luke deemed, "Your turn"

When Shawna looked at him quizzically, he repeated his prior question.

"The truth about what, Shawna?"

She took a deep breath. It was all or nothing now.

* * *

"Six weeks after we broke up, you left for Nam. I didn't know until after you'd left the country. I just want you to know that right off the bat"

Luke frowned. "Okay" he drew the word out.

Shawna rubbed her palms down the front of her thighs. She puffed out a breath and started pacing in front of Luke. His position never changed. Still leaning against the General, legs still crossed at the ankles, arms still crossed across his chest.

Shawna wondered how long his calm air would remain. She laughed to herself. Not too much longer. Maybe she shouldn't tell him at all. After all, what he didn't know wouldn't matter, right? If she told him, then he'd have to deal with the news. Why put him through the hell?

She sighed. She knew it wasn't in her to keep the secret any longer. He had a right to know. He'd had a right to know, should have known, when she first discovered it herself. But she'd been too scared to tell him then. She was scared to tell him now as well. She made a noise of self-disgust and wandered over to take in the scenery that Luke had stood in front of not long before.

"Shawna"

Luke's quiet voice broke into her jumbled thoughts. She turned to look at him. He hadn't moved, but an impatient look had replaced his air of calm.

"You know I can't quite read minds," he said, half jokingly. "I'm still working on that. So you'll have to actually tell me what's going, because I'm not going to know any other way"

Shawna nodded and walked a few steps back to him. Best just say it and say it simple.

"When you left for Nam, you didn't just leave me behind"

Luke frowned. Shawna rolled her eyes. Yeah, that was real simple.

"What I mean is … I … well …"

"Shawna" Luke said, a little more stronger.

"I was pregnant"

Boy, there really was something to be said for easing into things. Now the truth had been blurted out, all she could do was watch the play of emotions across Luke's face. Shock, denial, joy, anger.

"What" he said softly, lethally.

"I didn't know until you had left for Nam," she reminded him. "By then I wasn't sure how to get hold of you …"

"There were ways" he interrupted.

"…I don't know that I would have told you then, anyway"

"What!?" Luke exploded. "You were carrying _my_ child, yet you don't think you would have _told_ me about it? What kind of idiot logic is _that_?"

"My idiot logic" Shawna said, trying to keep as emotionless as possible. "Please Luke, just listen. I was young and scared. The man I loved had just gone to a war zone. We'd agreed that it was better for us to break up before you left, but I never wanted to give you up. I was worried that if I told you I was pregnant you'd insist on us getting married …"

"Dang right"

"I didn't want you to have to shelve your plans for your future just because of a mistake …"

"A mistake?" Luke was dumbfounded.

"Her conception may have been a mistake, but she never was …"

"She?" Luke interrupted. "I have a daughter?"

The dreamy smile he got was almost more than Shawna could bear.

"There's more Luke"

"What does she look like?" Luke asked, not paying heed to her warning. "_Who_ does she look like? Is she happy?"

"Luke, she's dead"

Luke sat back on the hood of the General with a huff, the wind knocked completely out of him. He raised his hands in a helpless gesture, and then let them fall again.

"When" he managed to whisper.

"She was two"

"How?"

"She caught pneumonia. It had been a bad winter. She had a cough but the doctor said she'd be fine. When she developed a fever I took her to the hospital; where she died three days later"

Luke hung his head so low his chin touched his chest.

"God, Shawna" he murmured. "You kept my daughter from me. For two years I was a daddy and you kept it from me" He looked up at her, anger vibrating from his tense form. "And why? Because you thought you knew what was best for me. You decided I would be better off not knowing about her, that way I wouldn't have to rearrange my life. I can't believe you'd be so cold hearted"

Shawna felt her heart rip in two.

"I did it for Kieran. I wanted her to have a normal life …"

Luke snorted. "Wait" he suddenly turned to her as his child's name sunk in. "You named our daughter Kieran?"

"Yes" she answered, a little thrown by the sudden change in subject. "It's Irish. It means …"

"Dark" Luke finished for her.

"How'd you know that?"

Luke shrugged the question off. Now wasn't the time to be discussing how amazing it was that Shawna had picked _that_ name.

"You married Kane knowing she was mine?"

"Kane never knew she was yours. He thought he was her father. When Kieran was born he became her father in every way. He doted on her like she was a priceless doll. He never got tired of holding her, feeding her, rocking her to sleep. He absolutely loved her, Luke."

"Well, wasn't that nice for him?" Luke said scornfully. He walked away from Shawna, and then suddenly spun back. "Damn it, Shawna! That should have been me enjoying all those things. You robbed me of that" His voice lowered to a whisper. "I don't think I can ever forgive you for that"

"Luke, I am so sorry. I'm not the girl I was then. Kieran dying almost killed me. Kane was in Nam, and wasn't very good at dealing with things openly. I think he almost wished he had died with her. He had nothing to live for …"

"He had you to come home to"

"No Luke, he didn't. He knew that my heart belonged to you. He knew that I'd never love him. We stayed together because of a mutual love for Kieran. Yet, when she died, she took the best part of us with her"

"Kane knew about me?" Luke asked. "He never said anything when we met"

"He didn't know the name of the man I truly loved" Shawna explained. "He never knew who you really were …"

"Well, he sure does now"

The strange voice had both Luke and Shawna turning.

A large man with dark hair approached them, gun in hand.

"Who are you?" Luke demanded.

"Jack Marrow" Shawna noted. What on earth was her neighbour doing here?

"Never heard of you" Luke addressed the stranger.

"Well," Jack smiled. "Maybe you'd recognise me by another name"

"Which is?" Luke asked.

"You don't remember me, Shawna?" Jack asked. "How could you forget me?"

Shawna frowned. The eyes were familiar, as was the voice. But she didn't recognise the man.

"What's your game, stranger?" Luke asked, moving a little closer to Shawna. He kept his eye on the gun the man held, waiting for an opening to strike.

"Allow me to introduce myself Sergeant Duke" Jack smiled coldly, removing the dark wig from his head to reveal a crop of blonde underneath.

"Shawna knows me as her nice quiet neighbour, Jack Marrow. But my birth certificate reads William Jackson … Hardy"

Shawna gasped.

She stood face to face with Kane's younger brother.

* * *


	10. Chapter 10

* * *

"Don't talk. I'm going to call for help"

Shawna opened her eyes as Luke left to make the call on the CB.

Before she knew it she was in his arms and he was talking softly to her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Sssh"

Shawna licked her lips. She felt so weak, so tired. She couldn't close her eyes though. Not until she made sure Luke understood.

"I should have told you about Kieran. You were right. You should have been her daddy…" She coughed.

"Shawna, don't talk, save your energy" Luke looked around for signs of help coming. Where were they?

"She was so beautiful," Shawna continued. "Black hair and bright blues eyes, so like you. Just like her beautiful daddy…" Shawna drifted off for a moment.

"Shawna!" Luke called her name loud enough to rouse her again. "Stay awake, honey. Helps coming"

Shawna struggled to remove something from the pocket of her jeans.

"I was going to give this to you after I told you about her" She slipped the small photograph into his hand. He looked at the small child with the cherub face and wide smile. So like himself, just like Shawna had said. Her hair was a riot of black curls, her eyes the same piercing blue he saw in the mirror every morning. The studio shot showed her sitting on a haystack wearing overalls and a blue checked shirt. Fitting, he thought with a smile, as he slipped the photo into the chest pocket of his own blue checked shirt.

The pain at not having known his daughter hurt more than he could put into words. But at least he knew she had had a good life, short as it may have been. He wouldn't have picked anyone else to be the mother of his child, and, he now realised that's possibly why he never married. No one had come close to Shawna.

"She's with you now" Shawna said, referring to the photo now tucked near Luke's heart.

"You should go and see her, talk to her"

"Where is she?" he asked, wondering if he could really handle visiting his daughter's grave. He still hadn't come to terms with her existence, let alone her death.

"A place called Forest Lawns" Shawna whispered. "It's so beautiful and peaceful. I wanted her to have a nice place, somewhere she could enjoy the view."

Luke was silent for a moment.

"I'll go see her Shawna"

She smiled up at him. "Promise?"

"Have I ever broken a promise to you?"

Shawna laughed awkwardly. " Considering you never promised to marry me, no"

Luke smiled at the old joke. It seemed to take on new meaning now though.

He looked down at the woman in his arms, his heart full of things he knew he would never have time to say to her. Things he should have said a lifetime ago, but that had taken a lifetime for him to realise. If only he could have that time back again.

"I should have married you Shawna. I should have made you stay. I should have been the man you needed"

"You were" she cut him off, reaching up to touch his face with a trembling hand. "You were then and you are now. Don't look back Luke. Look forward"

In the distance, Luke could hear the sounds of the sirens.

"William" Shawna said.

Luke looked back down at her.

"He won't be worrying you again," he said simply.

"He's dead?"

Luke didn't answer.

"You shot him" It wasn't a question. It was a statement that didn't need Luke to agree or disagree. She already knew it to be true.

"Poor Billy"

"What?" Luke asked in amazement.

"He spent his entire life trying to get his mothers attention, trying to be like Kane. Now he _is _just like Kane"

Luke bit back the instant retort. Now wasn't the time to tell what he thought about the brothers Hardy.

Shawna suddenly reared up in pain. A groan came from her as she clenched her fists. Her brow furrowed in agony. Luke held his breath and waited for her to relax again. As the pain passed, she cuddled back into his arms and sighed.

She looked up at Luke. The edge of her vision was fading, making Luke look like he was in the middle of a blackened frame.

"I think I'm going, Luke"

Luke laughed softly. "No your not. It's just a little scratch"

She thought about that. It didn't really hurt that much. Maybe he was right, after, she'd never been shot before. He would know more than she on the subject.

Still, that didn't explain why his voice was now sounding far away.

She looked up at him, desperate to commit his features to memory, sure that tomorrow he would feel different about her.

"I loved you then, I love you now, I'll always love you. Only you"

"And I love you too" he smiled.

Were those tears in his eyes? Her mind was becoming fuzzy. She thought she could smell blood. But that couldn't be so. It was just a scratch.

Just as her eyes were closing again, she remembered there was something important she wanted to ask him.

"What does the K stand for?"

Luke frowned. "What?"

Shawna coughed. Unaware that blood now trickled from the side of her mouth, she said, "Lukas. K. Duke. What's the K stand for? You never would tell me"

Luke laughed.

"It's a big family secret" he joked.

"Really?"

"Yeah, it was a name I hated, but now I'm not so sure"

Shawna frowned. "Now _you're _not making sense"

He leaned in real close and whispered in her ear. "Kieran"

She looked at him in shock.

Nodding slowly, he confirmed, "It's my middle name"

"I never knew" she said, awestruck that she had chosen his middle name for their baby. "Gosh"

"I couldn't have picked a better name myself," Luke told her, kissing her forehead. "I'll now consider my middle name to be an honour, not a blight"

"Thank you" Shawna whispered huskily.

She was still smiling when she closed her eyes for the last time.

* * *

Luke took a deep breath before letting out a yell that would have made Shawna's heart break, if she could've heard it.

He held her close, tight, rocking her slowly while shaking his head in denial.

Finally, he lay her down on the ground. He stroked her face, tucking a strand of hair back behind her ear, just the way she liked to wear it. She never could keep that piece in place, he thought with a watery smile. He then ran his hand over her body, trying to convince himself that she hadn't really left him.

The massive spread of blood across her chest reminded his heart that his head wasn't going to be fooled. She _had _left him. For good this time.

He slowly kissed her forehead, then her lips. Then he stretched out beside her on the ground and held her as he finally gave way to his tears.

And that was how the paramedics found them, just a little while later.

* * *

_Forest Lawns Cemetery – Houston_

He stood at the grave of his beloved daughter.

"Hello Kieran" he whispered. "Daddy's here"

He placed a small perfect rose on the child's grave.

Crouched next to the grave, he ran his hand over the smooth marble headstone that held a photo of his child at her happiest.

She would have been a beautiful woman now.

Would she be dating? What career would she have chosen?

Questions left unanswered. Dreams left untouched.

As he ran his hand along the marble he closed his eyes.

Before him he imagined his daughter, running to greet him with a wide smile on her face. Her arms outstretched to hug him. In the distance stood Shawna, smiling as she watched Kieran.

He refused to shed tears. He'd shed many over both his daughter and her mother.

He hoped Shawna had peace now.

"I have some bad news for you, honey"

He opened his eyes and looked at his daughter's photo.

"Mama won't be coming to see you anymore"

Thanks to the stupidity of William.

"But I will always be here for you, Kieran"

He kissed the top of the cold headstone, before rising to his feet.

"Daddy loves you, darling"

And then, Kane turned and walked away.

**THE END**

_**Author's Note:** Remember Trish from "Silence Speaks A Thousand Words"? Watch out for her and Bo's story...soon!_


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